NEW BRUNSWICK - New Brunswick Mayor Jim Cahill joined Building America CDE today in honoring the union construction workers building the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC), an Initiative that will usher in a new age of prosperity for the City’s Cultural Arts District, further bolstering New Brunswick’s standing as the regional hub for the performing arts.

“The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center will take our cultural district to even higher levels of excellence and doubles down on our commitment to the arts,” said Mayor Cahill. “We have enjoyed more than two decades of successful growth, but none of it could be achieved without the hard work of our construction workers, who have been there every step of the way throughout the $3.5 billion investment in the revitalization of our City.”

Building America CDE, a subsidiary of the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT), provided $7 million of New Markets Tax Credits towards the $83.9 million project. The 78,000-square-foot cultural center is expected to create approximately 410 new union construction jobs, while retaining about 105 existing jobs and creating 11 new permanent jobs. Many of the theatre jobs will be held by members of IATSE Local 21 or URA/AFT Local 1766.

“This project is 100% built with union labor, and the absolute best construction workers the world has to offer,” said IBEW Local 456 President Michael G. McLaughlin. “The supporters of this project are helping to create union construction jobs and permanent jobs. They should be applauded for supporting working families.”

The state-of-the-art cultural center is part of a robust redevelopment initiative that will impact the future of arts and culture in New Brunswick. The new performance space will replace two outdated facilities and provide higher quality and more efficiency. The Lyric Theatre will seat 462 guests and feature an 86-foot stage, and an orchestra pit accommodating up to 70 musicians. The Playhouse will seat 252 guests and feature a 60-foot stage.

“Not only as the CFO of Building America, but also a native of New Jersey and a Rutgers College alumnus, I am proud that Building America is able to play a pivotal role in financing the New Brunswick Performance Art Center,” said Harpreet Peleg, CFO Building America and Controller of the AFL-CIO HIT. “The Center will serve as an iconic venue of cultural programing and be transformative to the community and downtown.”

Building America CDE was established as a subsidiary of the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT) in 2010. The U.S. Treasury Department’s CDFI Fund certified Building America as a Community Development Entity, making it eligible to offer federal New Markets Tax Credits to investors. Building America’s mission is to bring jobs and services to severely distressed communities as it works towards solving endemic problems of poverty and lack of access to training and job opportunities.